That pretty much sums things up. Yesterday morning came and went and a Steve-Job-less Apple stage released no iPhone 5. Instead, almost every existing Apple product ended up looking exactly the same. They came out and patted their backs on the explosive growth of Apple products sold. The iPod line remains mostly unchanged, aside from a nicer screen and more clock faces for the iPod Nano and a new, white iPod Touch. The upcoming iOS software that powers most Apple mobile devices got another primer, one almost identical to the presentation back in June 2011.
And whooppee, you can now design and send real greeting cards from your iDevice. Sorry, Hallmark.
The real star was the update to the iPhone. While mostly identical in appearance to the existing iPhone 4, the new iPhone 4S adds a lot of power under the screen. A fantastic new 8-megapixel camera looks like it can blow most compact shooters out of the water. It also helps that it can shoot (and still edit) 1080p hi-def video. A new dual-core processor and better graphics make the leap from the iPad 2 into this phone. All that new power makes Apple’s new Siri voice assistant possible. While not a new concept, Siri on the iPhone brings voice control and feedback to an amazingly natural level. Ask Siri if you would need to bring an umbrella today and it would answer, yes, because there is rain in the forecast. Of course, this also opens the way to asking Siri stupid questions. For hours.
The iPhone 4S will be available on October 14, 2011. Prices vary from $199 to $399 with slavery to a mobile phone carrier. iOS 5 is slated to be released on October 12, 2011, so that older iPhones, iPod Touches and iPads can feel important too.
